Advice Line with Julia Hartz of Eventbrite

Key takeaways

Balancing different customer bases is crucial for entrepreneurs who operate across various platforms.
Storytelling can play a vital role in marketing products that require more time and effort to engage with.
Direct community engagement through events can significantly enhance brand awareness and customer loyalty.
Leveraging content and user-generated insights can help refine business strategies and drive sales.
Entrepreneurs should not shy away from dreaming big and visualizing the potential impact of their businesses.

Summary

Introduction and Background

In this episode, Guy Ross welcomes back Julia Hartz, co-founder and CEO of Eventbrite, to the Advice Line, where they discuss real business challenges faced by entrepreneurs. They draw on Julia's expertise and experience, which has been pivotal in shaping the Eventbrite landscape. The episode kicks off with an invitation for listeners to call in for advice about their own ventures.

Mia Miller's Pottery Business

Mia Miller, a pottery teacher based in Germany, seeks advice on balancing her YouTube channel, which shares pottery educational videos, and her online shop selling pottery tools. The discussion highlights how Mia finds it challenging to align the two different customer bases—YouTube viewers and online shop purchasers—given their differing needs. Julia encourages her to leverage the content from YouTube to promote her shop more effectively.

Jen Swebsoff’s Anyway Magazine

Next, Jen Swebsoff from Connecticut shares her endeavor with Anyway Magazine, a print publication targeting tweens and teens. She discusses the challenges of reaching families and marketing her magazine amidst a digital-heavy environment. Guy and Julia explore innovative strategies for marketing Jen's magazine by connecting with nostalgic parents and leveraging events and social media to attract young readers.

Anagha Misra's Baking Kits

Anagha Misra presents her challenge with Auntie Misri, a business creating culturally-inspired baking kits. The kits require more time to prepare than conventional baking mixes, and Anagha wants potential customers to gradually embrace this intentional process. Julia guides her on storytelling that emphasizes the journey of baking, while Guy suggests hosting live events that offer hands-on experiences to engage customers authentically.

Wrap Up and Key Lessons

As the episode concludes, Julia shares reflections from her journey with Eventbrite, touching on the importance of dreaming big as an entrepreneur. She encourages listeners to embrace the unique journeys of their businesses and offers insightful advice on marketing, community engagement, and turning challenges into opportunities.

Show notes

Today’s callers: Mia from Germany wants to know how to balance her pottery business between an online shop and a YouTube channel. Then, Jen from Connecticut is looking for ways to reach more families with her print magazine for tweens and teens. And Anagha from California wonders how to convince people to embrace the time required for her globally-inspired baking kits.

Plus, Julia reflects on Eventbrite’s recent acquisition announcement, and how in-person events can help brands and creators build community in today’s digital world.

Thank you to the founders of Pottery to the People, Anyway Magazine, and Aunty Misri for being a part of our show.

If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com or call 1-800-433-1298.

And be sure to listen to Eventbrite’s founding story as told by Julia on the show in 2020.

This episode was produced by Chris Maccini with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. Our audio engineer was Cena Loffredo.

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